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SALT LAKE CITY -- For the first time at the University of Utah's Clinical Neurosciences Center, surgeons have used a novel new cutting tool that is a far cry from the conventional scalpel.
Neurosurgeon Joel MacDonald, who has worked with the inventor of the device almost from the beginning, used the unique Ferromagnetic Wand, as it's called, on the first human -- in this case a patient needing spinal surgery. According to Macdonald, "these are areas in the body where you need a lot of precision and a lot of dexterity to the instrument, and you don't want a lot of heat spreading into untoward directions."
Unlike current electro-surgical tools, the paper clip-like tip on the end of the wand is coated with a special alloy that creates a microscopic magnetic field. The tool produces a pure heat that instantly turns on and off at the surgeon's command. No electricity passes through the body. It cauterizes as it cuts and there's no collateral damage.
That's what Dr. Kim Manwaring was looking for when he first kicked around the idea -- in his garage.
"I met Dr. Manwaring in a garage where he showed me a ham radio with a small piece of wire and he showed me how he could heat that piece of wire," said Domain Surgical CEO David McNally. "And we talked about the potential for that type of technology."
From a garage to a basement to what is now Domain Surgical, the wand was invented, developed and manufactured here. Now, with FDA approval, it's being used on the first human patients.
What Dr. Manwaring envisioned as a unique surgical cutting tool has become a reality.
"The ideal combination is an incision that is a pure searing or sealing of the margin with no bleeding," describes Manwaring, "And yet right beneath that sear is perfectly viable, healthy tissue."
I met Dr. (Kim) Manwaring in a garage where he showed me a ham radio with a small piece of wire and he showed me how he could heat that piece of wire.
–David McNally
Reduced time in surgery, lower risks for patients, less scarring and faster healing and recovery - the wand easily cuts like a scalpel or with a change of the tip, scoops out tumors or unwanted tissue. It senses automatically how it's being used and even uses flash heating for self-cleaning.
"This is the key goal," Manwaring said. "The surgeon is there to solve a problem and leave the least evidence that he was ever there."
Surgeons like MacDonald say they're optimistic. They like the tool's feel and versatility and its potential for all kinds of applications in the O.R.
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